Dodgson (the author of Alice in Wonderland) was an amateur
mathematician who wrote a book about determinants in 1866 and gave a copy
to the queen. The queen dismissed the book and so did the math community
for over a century. The Hodgson Condensation method resurfaced in the 80's
as the fastest method to compute determinants (almost always, and almost
surely). Interested about Lie groups, and their representations? In
crystal bases? In cluster algebras? In alternating sign matrices?
OK, how about square ice? Are you nuts? If so, come and listen.